Parosmia; altered taste and smell after Covid.

[Doggitydog]

So I’d just leave this here as I can’t see any posts on the subject. Covid last August, taste and smell came back 3-4 weeks later. Roll on February and things start going weird, smelling off or wrong. I threw perfume out, toothpaste, clothes softener, deodorants, all went the way of the bin.
It Took a good few weeks before I realised that a lot of people who had had Covid, were being affected the same way.
There is no current cure (from what I have researched) and doctors may try steroid sprays and nasal washes but it appears only time will heal. I am 8 weeks in now and it feels like I lose a safe food every day. Things I could eat yesterday taste of chemicals today. I can’t even drink tap water. I have my vaccine on Monday and am hoping it may make a difference, for some it has, for some it hasn’t.
Anyway, I suppose a lot of people are starting to see the after effects of Covid and I don’t suppose we’ll see the full extent for a while.

It’s rubbish. I know a guy who has had no smell or taste for a year, he depends on sense of smell for part of his job. I lost mine for about a week and it was bad enough. You don’t realise how much you rely on it until it’s gone (for safety mostly as I kept burning things because of the brain fog but couldn’t smell the burning). Thankfully mine seems to have returned but I totally sympathise. I feel like it’s not something that is taken seriously because it’s not life threatening but it really impacts your quality of life.

Have barely been able to smell or taste since January, I’d take phantosmia or Parosmia.

I had covid in March 2020, fully lost taste and smell for about a month. Then in august my taste and smell went...wrong 😁
I think it’s improving now though. Strawberries and oranges both tasted really chemically up until recently. Other stuff still not quite right but not as bad as before!

@SpeakingFranglais honestly, having had both, I’m not sure which I prefer. I could eat and drink normally with no taste, I could imagine it in my head. Now, I am living on protein shakes, vitamins, porridge, salted crisps and bottled water. Everything else is putrid to taste and putrid to smell. Brushing my teeth is an ordeal. If anyone knows or has a link to a non mint toothpaste I’d be so grateful.

Some childrens toothpastes are strawberry flavoured, I dont know whether they'd be any better for you? Or you could try asking on the SN boards as I know that some autistic children have a real issue w minty toothpaste so some of the mums there may have found a non mint brand.

Anyway sympathy

I second strawberry kids toothpaste. I had altered severe altered taste in pregnancy. Mint tasted disgusting. So I used children’s strawberry toothpaste. 3+ Kids toothpaste has the same fluoride in as adults so it’s just as good! Boots do their own brand & a couple supermarkets!

It’s pretty shit. It was difficult in pregnancy. I couldn’t bare anything sweet at all. Chocolate, cake, yoghurts, fruit all tasted awful. Which was just bizzare! But I knew it would get better at least. I sat eating a bag of mini eggs at 4am after giving birth & I actually cried that they tasted nice 😂 my midwife looked a bit confused!

Hope it gets better OP 🙏🏼

My DH is going through this, having had Covid in Dec 2020 (I had it too but am fine now). I feel for you because he’s finding it pretty distressing especially, as you mention, when he loses another ‘safe’ food. Most things smell off to him. He’s taken the air freshener out of the car, is trying to find a deodorant that doesn’t make him feel sick. Random items of my clothing smell awful to him. The worst thing is that our three year old smells bad to him too (but he can’t actually smell if he’s done a poo or anything, all he gets is ‘the bad smell.’) He spoke to the doctor and has been given the steroid nasal spray but he was told that time is likely to be the healer.

What he has started doing is scent training, after reading this article (there was a similar one in the New York Times too) www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2021/03/covid-19-smell-recovery-its-own-strange-experience/618357/?surface=meter_limit_reached&article_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theatlantic.com%2Fhealth%2Farchive%2F2021%2F03%2Fcovid-19-smell-recovery-its-own-strange-experience%2F618357%2F

Like pp mentions, you could try smell training. I lost my sense of smell after covid and used a kit from these people abscent.org/learn-us/smell-training

He could try making deodorant bars Agent cooper. I use this recipe and it really does work. I don't think the essential oil is entirely necessary.

www.mommakesjoy.com/all-natural-deodorant-bars/

Failing that, if there's a hand sanitiser he doesn't mind the smell of then he can use that to freshen up during the day (that's a little trick I learned when teaching hot yoga - kills any bad smells and stops them coming back for many hours).

yes!

I lost mine for about six weeks however when it came back I have a problem with onion and garlic.

Which is a problem as I'm a keen cook!!!!!!

The smell just smells rancid!!!!! I like the taste when its cooked and in the food but the smell of cooking it is revolting.

@QueenStromba

He could try making deodorant bars Agent cooper. I use this recipe and it really does work. I don't think the essential oil is entirely necessary.

www.mommakesjoy.com/all-natural-deodorant-bars/

Failing that, if there's a hand sanitiser he doesn't mind the smell of then he can use that to freshen up during the day (that's a little trick I learned when teaching hot yoga - kills any bad smells and stops them coming back for many hours).

@QueenStromba thank you for the tip, I’ll send him that link